Columnists

When I first moved to “Maryville,” I lived off of Icon Road — which is to say, in the alternate dimension where Country Club Road is called Icon Road, Maryville isn’t actually in Maryville, Jimmy John’s doesn’t deliver, and fortune cookies come wrapped up inside slips of paper with bad things that already happened to…

Let’s dump Biden next year. Seriously, we should adios the old boy because things are getting critical in the homeland. Sure, I’m at heart a Republican in search of renewal in the aftermath of leftist recklessness, but problems are worsening instead of improving as promised. It doesn’t have to be that way, but change is…

You know, you get to a certain age and everything that used to sound boring suddenly appears more exciting. Watching a movie at home was once something I did on a Saturday night because I didn’t have any interesting plans. Now, that is the interesting plan. Staying home and watching a movie I can pause,…

For 88 years, Social Security has provided income protection to millions of retirees, people with disabilities, dependents, and families that lose a wage earner. This year, we will administer more than $1.3 trillion in benefits and payments to more than 70 million beneficiaries. In addition, we issue millions of Social Security numbers each year, maintain…

While elected federal officials on both sides of the aisle are losing their ever-loving minds in the nation’s capital, I was pondering early the other morning while having a cup of coffee like I do every morning about all of the nonsense going on in the world. While looking out over the back 40, sipping…

This time of year, many sports are calling for our attention. From college and pro football to postseason baseball and school soccer, it’s likely a lot of us will spend hours watching a game or match – whether in person or on TV. And almost as important as watching the game is having snacks on…

Thank you for reading. In a society that is encouraging you to grab your news and information from clickbait headlines and Photoshopped images, we thank you for reading your local newspaper. Though the power of Amazon and Netflix is so strong, and the value of home entertainment is higher than ever, thank you for reading.…

As Missouri legislators prepare for the 2024 legislative session, they should consider how many of their major 2023 accomplishments received limited public attention The 2023 legislative session focused on divisive issues like restricting transgender medical procedures for minors and restricting students from participating on school sports teams designated for a sex different than the student’s…

We’re excited to announce the addition of two helpful screening tools on SSA.gov! These tools are the Benefits Screener and the Card Replacement Screener. The Benefit Screener helps you determine your eligibility for benefits and the Card Replacement Screener helps you request a replacement Social Security card. Let’s go over how you can use these…

“Aging is not lost youth but a new stage of opportunity and strength.” — Betty Friedan Today is my birthday. In my mind I am still in my 20s, but in reality, today I am 57. How in the world did that happen? Fifty seven used to seem so old. Ancient, really. Like grandma old.…